According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, 82 percent of the state of California currently falls in the "Extreme Drought" category. The years-long dry spell has tapped groundwater reserves and left reservoirs at record lows. Shasta Lake and Lake Oroville are both down to 30% of full capacity, exposing steep shorelines that were formerly under hundreds of feet of water. Marinas are crowding into ever-smaller coves as the water recedes, and ramps and roads no longer reach the shoreline. Getty Images photographer Justin Sullivan traveled to a number of these reservoirs last month and captured dramatic images, evidence of the severity of the water crisis in California. [22 photos total]

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A section of Lake Oroville is seen nearly dry on August 19, 2014 in Oroville, California. As the severe drought in California continues for a third straight year, water levels in the State's lakes and reservoirs are reaching historic lows. Lake Oroville is currently at 32 percent of its total 3,537,577 acre feet.
(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
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Dry cracked earth on the banks of Shasta Lake at Holiday Harbor in Lakehead, California, on August 30, 2014. Shasta Lake is currently near 30 percent of its total capacity, the lowest it has been since 1977.
(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
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(1 of 2) For a before-and-after comparison, first an image from a wetter time: the Green Bridge passes over full water levels at a section of Lake Oroville near the Bidwell Marina on July 20, 2011.
(Paul Hames/California Department of Water Resources via Getty Images)
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House boats are dwarfed by the steep banks of a shrinking Lake Oroville on August 19, 2014 in Oroville, California. As the severe drought in California continues for a third straight year, water levels in the State's lakes and reservoirs is reaching historic lows. Lake Oroville is currently at 32 percent of its capacity.
(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
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